May 6, 2006    Chocolate

GREETINGS AND SALUTATIONS from Arnold's Way!

It is the first of May when I begin this months newsletter I could of written about a 100 different subjects In the art of healing oneself, the list is endless.  In fact there is no end. What I thought and what I actually wrote apparently worlds apart were in reality the same statement I thought I was going to write about the over indulgence of chocolate not so much of its benefit but why not it should be eaten. It was one out of the blue by gosh holy Toledo thoughts that zoomed into my being about two days ago 15 minutes before I was supposed to arrive at work. I, Arnold, who up to until two-day s ago had barely even an opinion on chocolate, had now becoming a newborn chocoholic reformer. I wanted to share this eye-opener awakening wisdom with everyone.  I, for whatever reason, had become smitten on the idiocy of thinking chocolate is good for one’s soul, good for one’s body and good for eating it with reckless abandonment. I, Arnold owner of Arnolds Way, wanted to create a happenstance; if not stopping people from eating chocolate at least warn them to moderate their intake.

I, who just two days ago, was literally driving down the street minding my own business enjoying the sun, the peace and the quietness of a town that hasn’t really lost it’s boyish charm .It was that type of a small town who’s change could barely measure a small hiccup let alone an eye-opener awakening on the evils of chocolate. It was that type of day when all of a sudden for no reason other than the sky falling and great big lizard was splattering on windshield. These big bang ruinous thoughts entered into my domain of being. The words stated loud and clear that chocolate is bad. I said to myself like where did these words come from. These thoughts should not be entering into my head on this beautiful day in a quiet town just minutes from work. What I thought and what became reality became more bizarre after each passing minute.

I arrived at the store slightly late, slightly flabbergasted and slightly not sure that what I saw was really what I saw. It was customer waiting for me at my store. I stared at her and she stared back. It was one of those Fellini movie upstages where everything that was real became surreal. I had no idea what to expect. I then heard her words rumbling into me like molten steel coming out of it’s hot drum. These were the roars of an epiphany that struck my core of recallective consciousness. She said “ I want a chocolate shake. I have been thinking about it all morning. “ I was somewhat taken aback especially since these thought on the evils of chocolate were fresh in my memory. I stood defiantly against the wind raised myself taller than I have ever been (5’8” as compared to 5’7”) and said “no, I will not serve you chocolate”.  I was somewhat taken aback by my reply and seriously taken aback by her reply. She stated” Arnold thank you I really didn’t want to order that it was just on my mind.” Ten minutes later another young woman walked in; To say she was white as a sheet would be an understatement, to say she was half out of it and half not there would be as close as a picture of what she looked like as a fair picturesque statement. In other words she was sick. She had one of those migraines that literally stopped her world from even existing. She was in pain and didn’t know what to do. All these things I saw, I felt and the most amazing part was I knew what to say and what she should do to rid her body of those evil strangulations of her being.  I knew her from being at my store literally everyday and ordering the same thing:  a banana whip with lots of chocolate. I couldn’t believe it my second hard luck side effect story on the over indulgence of chocolate in the first ten minutes .I stared her in the eye and said point blank, “I am not serving you chocolate today or any other day” .You would have thought she would be angry. You would have thought she would have made some type of protest.   All these thoughts that should have happened didn’t and all these things that didn’t happen did. She said, “thank you, I will not only pass on the chocolate today I will not eat it any more.” I thought I was in a surrealistic movie ensemble that all my thoughts on the evils of eating chocolate were surfacing like ants looking for a hide-away to crawl to. If two stories were not enough to convince me on at least warning my customers of not eating chocolate in excess, Lo and behold I received a phone call at 10:30 am. It was my third customer contact of the day. It was a customer who I have known for least 8 years .I knew he was eating a mostly raw diet and had made a miraculous recovery from a life threatening disease by changing his dietary habits.

What I thought I knew of his miraculous recovery was now not only being sabotaged but also completely being squashed. I listened to his words. I listened to his complaints. I listened to his frustration, his pains and his not knowing what to do as the long stories of all his major symptoms that once disappeared were now returning in greater numbers. What he was supposed to be doing and what he was doing was being precisely destroyed by the simple addition of 8 heaping teaspoons of chocolate to his morning green smoothie. I was flabbergasted listening to his story. I was flabbergasted listening to his illness that would eventually destroy him.  I was flabbergasted mostly on what I was hearing. He was adding to his green smoothie. I was flabbergasted for lack of a better word.  I stated one word and only one word to him” Stop”:  He had to stop the madness and the insanity of adding this supposedly super food into his daily green smoothie. I said point blank to him, “You  are literally destroying your self  with these 8 additional teaspoons of chocolate.”

That was my chocolate stories on that Tuesday morning in my first half hour of work. I could have added my reflux story or breast cancer or a hundred other little antidotes of the different disease that come my way and stories of different people who are disobeying the laws of nature and paying a hefty price. Our lives are meant to be of vitality of beauty of being in the moment and enjoying the essence of our existence like a new born child that comes into the world full of hope and joy.

It is on that note that I give thanks to my daughter, Maya.  The rest of the newsletter is dedicated to her. She has the one story which is my pride, my glory and which makes me the most proud. Maya has taught me the secrets of why health and why disease. It is based on one word and only one word that is part of her every movement, the love of thyself. This is the universal gift to her and to ourselves and we should be thankful for our every existence. There is no greater reward.  Every word, every bite and every thought should be with a loving thought otherwise its toxic. It is that simple that pure, easy or hard to do and be. If you hadn’t already heard, if you hadn’t already noticed, my daughter was pregnant and continued to work for me almost to the day of delivery, not that she had to but because she wanted to. Everything had to be perfect. Every food item had to be filled with love. This is her signature statement. This is her glory, her pride and her love to work on a daily basis next to her dad, me. It is this love of me by her and my love for her that I share. It is this love that we have for each other as well as with our customers that help create the type of store that keeps our customers coming back and back. It is like an extended family that keep growing and growing.

It is this on this note that I share this month’s feature story: the birth of Siyanna Jade, my daughter Maya’s first child. It was one of those crazy Thursdays where I was one person shy and barely able to keep up with the amount of customers coming into the store. It was a type of day where the first thing in the morning I put on my special shirt.   I knew deep down to the very core of my being that after nine months and three days my daughter was going to give birth sometime today. I also knew it was going to be later than sooner since my daughter knew I was literally working one person short and she really didn’t want me to leave early. We have this connection of love and respect for the other. We have this connection of 100% acceptance of the other with all the flaws, with all the idiosyncrasies and with all the imperfections. We are both connected by the most important ingredient; the love of the other, no matter what.

These were my circumstances for knowing. These were her circumstances for doing the right thing for herself and her body. My daughter was diagnosed with a strep infection, which by law requires a penicillin IV solution before the birth. It was one of those things that made my blood cringle and my words lived with animosity for the medical system that desperately needs to be overhauled and reviewed from a perspective of what is best for the patient. My daughter also dreaded the penicillin so much so that she drove herself to excellence in everything she ate and more importantly everything she thought.  This, my friends, is the secret for exuberant health; not so much what we eat but more importantly how we treat the food that we eat. Maya did just that. Every moment was an action of love. Her magical being created love for whoever came into her presence. It is on this special circumstance that she waited and waited for her delivery to be of love and only love and without chemical interference.  Maya began her labor approximately 3:00 pm on a Thursday afternoon April 27th. Maya knew of her body’s innate wisdom. Maya knew of the dangers of penicillin. Maya instinctively knew what to do. She did what any mother would do. She began her deep breathing. She trusted the laws of nature to guide her. My friends there is no handbook on exactly what it is a woman experiences the first time she gives birth. There is just a ‘knowing”. What holds true for pregnancy also holds true for sickness. There is a tendency not to trust, not to call on the innermost wisdom of one’s knowledge as a guide to determine what is best for us.

Thus began Maya ‘s story of her labor and the birth of her daughter. There were so many things she knew and so many things she didn’t know. Maya knew she didn’t want to go to the hospital to early. Maya knew she didn’t want the penicillin in her body or anywhere near her newborn child. Maya also knew that she was not only scared but also afraid of the unknown. Maya’s labor pain began around at 3:00. My friends, this is where the real learning begins. This is where the real test of the unknown begins. My friends, this is the part where one has to trust their innermost wisdom.  Maya began the deep breathing. She began having longer contractions. She trusted her own wisdom.   The labor progressed for two hours. It was at this point the childbirth instructor gave the final whistle. As quoted, “ off to the hospital we go”. At 5:30 pm after two and a half hours of being in labor, nine months of pregnancy, Maya was ready to give birth to her first child.  This, my friends, is the miracle of life. This, my friends, is how we fight disease.  This, my friends, is how we beat the odds of ever getting a disease.  Follow your heart, trust your instinct and allow nature to take its course.

Maya arrived at the hospital at 6:10 pm about 10 minutes after I closed the store. She felt safe and secure in her position as a woman and a mother to be. As soon as Maya stepped out of the car, she had the urgency to push as if sirens of warning were on a one-day strike. Maya desperately wanted to push. She instinctively knew that the baby was coming and it was coming out at breakneck speed (whatever that means). Maya instinctively knew that she needed  to get to the delivery room fast. Linda, the childbirth instructor, who was at her side grabbed and I do mean grabbed a hospital wheelchair. She placed Maya in it and began running. A call to the delivery room was put on stand bye. Joe, Maya’s boyfriend, who was just parking the car and strolling into the hospital, was immediately rushed into the delivery room to watch Maya give birth to her first child at 6:18 pm.

This, my friends, is the miracle of miracles. This, my friends, is the miracle of love, the miracle of healing, and the miracle of what it takes to not only heal ourselves but to heal the country. I stand in total salute for my daughter’s love, which she so elegantly shares so freely to those around. I stand in total salute to honor my daughter as being totally blessed on a moment-to-moment basis as she so lovingly reminds me what it takes to be of health and purity on that level. I give thanks for her being.

Love, dad